June 10, 2006 is a big day for small cities and towns

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY - June 10, 2006 is National Small Cities and Towns Day. This year's theme is "The Power of We--Building Inclusive Communities." Cities and towns with populations less than 50,000 across the country are encouraged to schedule activities to commemorate this special day.

Small Cities and Towns Day is a national event organized by the National League of Cities (NLC) to recognize the importance of America's small cities and towns and to honor the service of elected and appointed officials in those communities. NLC President Jim Hunt and the Small Cities Council urge small municipalities to:

• Highlight your community's commitment to inclusion by passing a resolution and joining the Partnership for Working Toward Inclusive Communities.
• Bring attention to your community's effort around affordable housing, race and ethnic relations, equal citizen participation in community decision-making and programs for the disabled.
• Share valuable insights, experiences and lessons learned. You may wish to utilize your local cable television media to host a dialogue on what it means to be an inclusive community.
• Recognize, publicize and celebrate the work of elected and appointed public officials and individuals in your city who have helped to make your city an inclusive community.

Source: www.nlc.org/inside_nlc/committees___councils/820.cfm, accessed June 10, 2006

To assist in that effort, the NLC provides a number of resources:

• A Partnership for Inclusive Communities tool kit.
• A form to help participants share examples of Inclusive City Programs.
• An open invitation to send digital photos or videos to NLC so participating cities are recognized in NLC publications and web pages.
• Contacts who can provide more information on National Small Cities and Towns Day:
  LaStar Matthews at 202-626-3177 or matthews@nlc.org and
  Lesley-Ann Rennie at 202-626-3134 or rennie@nlc.org
• And Five Great Reasons to Live in a Small City or Town (in "America Celebrates Its Small Cities and Towns," a 06/05/06 Small Cities Press Release):

1. Everyone knows everyone else, so your kids have to behave better!
2. Going to the grocery store can turn into a mini town hall meeting so be prepared to stay awhile wherever you go.
3. If you double park for five minutes, no one honks the horn.
4. Citizens really get involved so you can actually accomplish something.
5. Everyone feels like they have a stake in "MY town."

Need more ideas to commemorate the day? Read about the town profiled in my Blog Critics article, "06-06-06 is a Bodacious Bonza Bottler Day," and Lisa Tolliver On Air and Online posting, "Bodacious Bonza Bottler Day 06-06-06 is an occasion for fetes, not threats." Although the municipality is not on the NLC membership list, there isn't a snowball's chance in Hell that that unincorporated Michigan hamlet (pop. 266) wouldn't know how to optimize a high profile promotional opportunity.